1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an anti-theft device which obstructs the socket and coupler lever of a gooseneck trailer hitch coupling mechanism and prevents the gooseneck trailer from being towed.
2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Anti-theft devices intended to protect against theft of an unattended and unhitched trailer are abundant in the prior art. Although trailer hitches commonly use one of three standard varieties of hitches (ball and socket type hitches, king-pin hitches, and gooseneck hitches) many of these anti-theft devices incorporate a means of blocking the socket of a trailer hitch coupling mechanism. However, each type of trailer hitch presents unique differences which result in different conceptual approaches to protect a trailer from being towed.
For example, the typical gooseneck trailer hitch is made up of an irregular or non-symmetrical coupler foot plate attached to the lower end of a generally vertical post, the upper end of which post is attached to the trailer. Such a gooseneck coupling mechanism is significantly different from tongued trailers, the type which are commonly recognized for trailering boats. Whereas tongued trailers are generally horizontally configured, the trailer tongue being in the same plane as the coupling mechanism which connects with a receiving device on a pull vehicle, the post in gooseneck hitches may have a horizontal beam attached at a right angle to the upper end of the post, which horizontal beam attaches to the front of the trailer.
The coupler at the lower end of the post generally connects with a receiving device on a pull vehicle. The gooseneck trailer coupler itself is made up of front and rear facing portions of various configurations, one portion usually including a lever that operates the coupler. The coupler lever is generally made up of a cylindrical bar having a vertical component which penetrates an aperture in the foot plate of the coupler and a horizontal component at its upper end by which the user may grasp the lever.
To couple a gooseneck trailer to a pull vehicle, requires manipulation of the coupler lever. Manipulation is usually performed by initially raising the coupler lever vertically so that vertical component is removed from the aperture in the foot plate, thereby allowing the securing mechanism to be positioned to either accept or release the receiving device of the pull vehicle ("open" position). After the socket has received the receiving device on the pull vehicle, the coupler lever is released, whereupon the vertical component again is received by the foot plate aperture, thereby returning the coupler lever to its original resting position ("closed position").
The following patents are illustrative of various devices which apply the concept of blocking a receiving socket of a tongued trailer. U.S. Pat. No. 4,141,569 issued Feb. 27, 1979 to Dilk describes an anti-theft device for a tongued trailer which utilizes a receiving ball covered by a steel box with a hinged cover acting in combination with a padlock. A receiving ball is affixed on the bottom plate of an open topped steel box wherein one of the end plates is removed so as to enable the box to receive the trailer tongue and coupler. When the receiving ball receives the trailer socket, a second covering plate is fitted over the top of the trailer coupling mechanism to encase the coupling mechanism. The covering plate and the box interact so that the padlock both secures the box and is partially encased exposing only the key opening of the lock, further preventing tampering with the padlock.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,226,133 issued Dec. 28, 1965 to Geresy describes various embodiments of a combination of separate elements which obstruct the coupling socket of a tongued trailer hitch. A characteristic embodiment is made up of a ball with a bore, a headed pin of a length greater than the bore length which is stopped in the bore by its head, and a slidable cover plate. The elements act together by inserting the pin through the ball, inserting the ball into the socket, and sliding the plate onto flanges on the trailer hitch so as to cover the ball. With the plate in place, a hole in the plate allows the pin to drop partially through the plate until the head at the other end of the pin and bore prevents further dropping. A padlock is then slipped through a hole in the pin to secure the assembly in place.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,087,064 issued Feb. 11, 1992 to Guhlin shows a safety device using an upright bar, plate and padlock combination to prevent de-coupling of a trailer from a ball-hitch.
A major disadvantage associated with these particular anti-theft devices is that they are inappropriate for use with a gooseneck trailer hitch because none can encompass the vertical post.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,233,913 issued Oct. 1, 1962 to Brown describes a ball and chain combination to obstruct a house-trailer tongue coupling socket. The ball is inserted into the trailer hitch socket and locked in place in a conventional manner using a padlock on the trailer coupling mechanism. The chain is arranged through cooking gas tank handles found on the tongue of the trailer so as to prevent their theft. U.S. Pat. No. 5,222,755 issued Jun. 29, 1993 to O'Neal also describes a ball and chain in combination with padlock for a gooseneck trailer hitch (see FIG. 4 of '755 patent). The chain wraps through a coupler lever and is secured by the padlock. Although a ball and chain arrangement could accommodate almost any trailer hitch, the chain can be easily cut with bolt cutters. The ball is also left exposed to attack by prying, where an unsuccessful attempt may leave the coupling mechanism damaged.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,405 issued Jan. 26, 1993 to Wheeler, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,255,545 issued Oct. 26, 1993 also to Wheeler, describe a locking device specifically adapted for use with a gooseneck trailer. A slidable plate cooperates with a lock-body that, when aligned, receives a locking pin to secure the plate and lock body. The locking pin is in turn locked by insertion of a padlock. The system creates a box-like structure that obstructs the receiving socket of a gooseneck trailer. However, this device has the disadvantage of having multiple lock-body parts, which can get lost and which require alignment and assembly using at least two hands. Furthermore, the device's lock-bodies offer only one line of defense by only slidably obstructing the socket of the coupler. For example, the device fails to disable the securing mechanism by lacking a means which obstructs and locks the coupler lever, nor does it supply a receiving device which blocks the socket at the bottom of the post, nor does it provide a means of protecting a padlock from bolt cutters.
Therefore, it is apparent that a need still exists for a unitary anti-theft device that obstructs the socket and coupler lever of a gooseneck trailer hitch coupling mechanism and prevents the gooseneck trailer from being towed.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.